The is Power in Praise

 There is power in praise. Praise is defined as 1.  to express a favorable judgment of : Commend; 2.  to glorify (a god or saint) especially by the attribution of perfections (Merriam Webster)

 

Praise invites the presence of God into your life. Psalm 22:3 But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.  He comes and lives in our praise. He hears our worship. He is pleased when we praise. He responds to praise.  God's presence will change the atmosphere and change you. He is able to give us a peace and a joy that the world cannot understand.  I know God works through our praise. He deserves all praise. He is worthy of all praise. He has praise woven throughout the Word.  When we go to the temple built by Moses, we see that God wanted to dwell with his people. The temple was there not only for worship, but as a way for God to dwell with his people. In Exodus 25:8 And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them. This verse explains that he wanted to be with them. He travelled with them when they moved and had a place to dwell. He wants to be with his people. He now comes in and fills each of us with his Spirit. We are now the temple. 1 Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? We are now the vessel meant for him to live and be praised. The temple had the outer court, the inner court and the holy of holies. When Jesus became the sacrifice, the veil was torn so we have access to the Lord himself. We go to the holy of holies. He wants relationship with each and every one of us. We enter the holy of holies by proceeding from the outer courts of praise to the inner court of consecration, to the very throne room of righteousness. There is one gate to enter.  Psalm 11:4 Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name.  Praise ushers in the peace and joy in his presence.

Praise can change our mindset. Part of praise is being thankful. Thankfulness is very powerful in how we view our lives and our situations.  Being thankful will change a mindset, change your hope, change how you handle the situation in which you find yourself. When I begin to recount the goodness of God, the blessings, and thank him, I stop dwelling on the problem and give him the glory and worship.  He deserves all our praise. If we focus on the problem, the storm, we get our eyes off of Jesus. We begin to sink, just as Peter did.  We can keep our eyes on Jesus by praising him. Hebrews 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Praise brings joy.  Even when I do not feel like praising God, I can start with that sacrifice of praise. Just take that step to worship God. His presence enters and he can work on our hearts and minds. He can take what we worry about and turn it to praise. His peace can wipe our the worry, His joy can heal the hurting.  Isaiah 61:3 O appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.  Philippians 4:7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Praise is also a way of defeating the enemy.  When we praise God, The enemy cannot stand. He may try to imitate God by posing as a lion.   1Peter 5:8  ]Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.  But God is the Lion of Judah. Judah means 'praise'  Jesus was born in the tribe of Judah. He is the Lion of Judah. Revelation 5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. Jesus is the One with the power we need to defeat the enemy.  Praise ushers in our victory.  The enemy cannot win if we are praising God through all circumstances. He cannot gain a foothold as we worship God Almighty. In 2 Chronicle 20 we can read about King Jehoshaphat leading the tribe of Judah (praise) to send the praise up first. The singers entered the battle field first.  They found the enemy already defeated.  v. 21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever. If you need victory, start praising God. He will fight the battle for you and bring the victory you need. 

Praise is powerful. Praise brings his presence. Praise changes you inside out. Praise brings you victory. Praise brings us before the feet of Jesus. Praise Him!

Psalm 150 Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord. Praise ye the Lord.